C2 Software: An Interview with Kirk Potter

As part on our ongoing partnership with C2 Software, we thought it would be worthwhile spending some time chatting to Kirk Potter, Operations Director, to find out about his career with C2 and plans for 2017…

Everyone meet Kirk!

First things first, can you give us a brief background on C2 Software?

C2 Software was founded in 1997 by Finlay Carmichael and Steven Carnegie, who worked together at NCR in Dundee. With their experience, they identified an opportunity to develop software solutions that could help businesses achieve more through internet and web technologies. It was out of this idea that a content management system grew, followed by a general shift towards being web technology specialists. In the last 5 years C2 has had more of a focus on Microsoft Dynamics CRM. C2 has now advanced into a business transformation consultancy and associated software implementation team.

How and why did you join C2 Software?

I joined C2 in 2000 as a Software Development Manager; it was my second ever job and before this I had a working background in ERP systems. At this time, the internet and specifically the web was still in its infancy, and C2 were very innovative for their time, so it was very much a case of right place and right time for me. I am born and bred in Dundee so the location was a great selling point for me too.

In 2003 I moved into a Research & Development Director role and also became a shareholder in the company. Fast forward ten years and I progressed into my current role as Operations Director. It’s fair to say my role has been at the coal face in the early days in terms of hands on software development, before moving into a research focus in order to find technical opportunities for C2. Currently I concentrate on making sure day to day operations run smoothly. Up to this point I have seen the company steadily transform from 6 employees up to 20 and I am genuinely excited for the future of C2.

What day to day responsibilities do you have now?

My job has a lot of variety; I still do a lot of consulting work for our customers as well as getting involved in project management for current and new customer projects. Internally, I do a lot of work on developing and implementing our own business strategy as well as working closely with teams on performance management and career development. I have specific interests in usability/user experience and also in security and provide advice on these both internally and to customers.

What is the key message for C2 Software in 2017?

The one key message would be our focus on more systemisation and process development. The key element for us is repeatability, enabling us to create high quality experiences for our clients again and again in a consistent way. For employees, this is about operating within a defined framework where we build on quality and capability through a process of continuous improvement. We want to challenge what we know as a business and continually question how we can do better for our clients.

On a more personal level, we are very focused on making sure C2 promotes an interesting and stimulating culture for both our current and new employees. We have ambitious goals for 2017 and with our full workforce on board with our shared values, we are on track for maximum output, meaning our employees will see the results of their hard work and be rewarded appropriately.

So why should people work at C2?

We work on a variety of truly interesting projects, we use cutting edge products such as Dynamics 365 and we work hard to create an environment that is genuinely innovative in our way of thinking.

I can confidently say C2 is a place to build a career rather than just a job and our very low staff turnover rate speaks for itself. We currently have 6 employees with over 10 years’ service each here meaning our experience in this industry ranks very highly. New employees will no doubt benefit from this collective experience we are keen to share.

Finally, we are passionate about the Scottish technology industry and 2017 is going to bring a huge focus on our outreach work to find and nurture talented youngsters. We are working hard to bring apprentices into our development and support areas. There is a definite value to be had from individuals who don’t necessarily want to go to university or college but would be suited to a career in IT. With a large projected skills shortage across the tech industry in Scotland, as an employer we have a responsibility to address this issue head on and by bringing new talent in we hope to contribute to positive industry changes.

Interested in finding out more? If you want to chat about opportunities with C2 Software, get in touch with Laura Armstrong who is the official recruitment partner. You can call Laura on 0141 231 1260 or email laura.armstrong@c2software.com

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